It was a pretty smooth affair but honestly I'm not sure I understand the difference between this any 90% of the MCU films. It's by that calculation a generic action blockbuster. I hear a lot of people saying this movie doesn't deserve to be this good with barely suppressed glee. I just don't see it. I'm a fan of science fiction and fantasy. I sporadically watched the D&D cartoon as a child. I enjoyed to an extent the previous D&D movie.

I just don't see anything in this movie worth getting overly excited over as someone who isn't steeped in D&D lore. That said this movie is like an MCU movie if it wasn't stuck with the framework of having to fit itself into a (at this point fairly rigid) context. It doesn't have to account for Captain America or give a nod to Marvel's Captain Marvel or have cameo by photograph of the Hulk or have Shield logo on some paperwork. This is an MCU movie if it wasn't beholden to the rest of the MCU. I mean there's a bloody hulk smashing scene at the end. Everyone loved that scene in The Avengers. it gets referenced every 5.8 MCU films. Here we have the fantasy version. It's still funny it's just.... well I've seen it before.

Maybe if you were into the D&D modern lore this might feel different. There were certainly nods I recognized by name only and certainly things I felt certain were nods I didn't understand. Unlike say Dune where I can understand how important a sandworm must be to this story even without reading it. I don't care about displacer beast. Looking back that was probably an audience clap moment. I was more impressed with the mimic myself.

But it's fun enough. I call it generic. I imply it's reductive but walking out of the movie I was very satisfied. Not the best thing I've ever seen. Not even the best blockbuster I've ever seen. But as a movie it was good and effective. I'd even watch it again. Even if it does have an overly-perfect-dead-wife trope.